


A Second Chance

by Sharky_Smil3



Series: Soulmate drabbles and shots [6]
Category: Dragon Ball
Genre: And I should be ashamed because I can totally see it, Aro!Future Trunks Briefs, Gen, I did not think about the possibilities of AroAce Trunks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-26
Updated: 2019-02-26
Packaged: 2019-11-05 20:39:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,574
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17925962
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sharky_Smil3/pseuds/Sharky_Smil3
Summary: It became such a usual thing that not once did he stop to consider the idea of soulmates—that and for the longest time he had believed that soulmates implied the romantic kind. Which made him flinch at the thought (still does).





	A Second Chance

**Author's Note:**

> Happens between The History of Trunks and the first time he travels in time.
> 
> CREDITS: https://imagines-fr-days.tumblr.com/post/174376953425/soulmate-au-prompts
> 
> Number 6 in the list. Pain:you feel the pain of your soulmate and vice versa. You feel their emotional pain and vice versa. 
> 
> Being soulmates doesn’t necessarily mean that they will always be romantic. They can also be best friend soulmates— which is how I view young Future Trunks and Future Gohan’s relationship. They deserved so much better!!! :’(

It became such a usual thing that not once did he stop to consider the idea of soulmates—that and for the longest time he had believed that soulmates implied the romantic kind. Which made him grimace at the thought (still does).

All he knew was that the faint prickling humming right under his skin, and the sudden spiking tugs at his heart just existed. It existed from the moment of his birth, the feeling was always, always there. So he figured that everyone had it.

That’s why he never mentions it to his mother or Gohan.

****

The first time happened in such a trivial way that it is dismissed as mere embarrassment from his part.

“Soulmates? I thought that was part of fairy tales,” he says with a scowl. And it doesn’t go past Gohan that it is just like Vegeta’s, truly the Saiyan’s child. He hums in response.

They are sitting in what was once a mountain. Now another piece of land flattened out by the Androids. The patches of yellow and dry prickly grass disrupting the attempts of life in the small patch of green they had managed to find for their break.

“So back then,” continues Trunks almost uncertainly, ”people had soulmates?” Horror colors his face at the thought, it gives him goosebumps. Gohan breaks out in laughter at the display. Trunks feels his face heat up, and his heart feels light as Gohan ruffles his hair.

“Hard to believe but yes,” he manages after calming down. Trunks is just too innocent for his own good. He scoots closer to the thirteen year old, book in hand, pointing at the excerpt.

“Though mom never told me much about the mechanics, here it says that soulmates feel each other’s pain. There was all kinds of soulmates!”

“For all we know, it could have been something else...like hypertension or exhaustion,” reasons Trunks, refusing to believe that such a thing was possible.

“Maybe...but if it was at all true, don’t you think that’s amazing?” Asks Gohan, looking up from the book to meet the other’s perplexed gaze. Trunks raises an eyebrow at him, as Gohan looks back up to the sky.

The humming under his skin, for a split second, spikes.

***

The second time it happens he waves it off as battle pain.

They head out as soon as they hear news of the Androids’ recent attack on an amusement park, and all hell breaks loose as soon as both half-Saiyans land right in front of Android 17 and Android 18.

“Stand back Trunks,” growls Gohan.

Trunks is ten meters away when the explosion occurs. And soon, Android 17 and Gohan are locked in battle. Trunks watches in awe, fists clenched. As soon as Gohan turns Super Saiyan, his own hope rises.

“He’ll win! Gohan has to win!”

Gohan is starting to push back on Android 17’s attack, when Android 18 intercepts his path. In a fluid motion, she’s hitting the side of his face. It sends him flying against the glass of a store. He grunts at the impact, his lungs burning as he tries to breathe some air into them. Glass glitters against his clothes as he stands on shaky feet. He has no time to bear his surroundings when the twins attack.

Android 18 slams a hand against his calves, making him loose balance—as if the dizziness from lack of oxygen wasn’t enough. Android 17 follows with knee kick against his chest, making his ribs crack under the pressure. Not giving him a chance to counterattack, Android 18 finish their combo with an uppercut that sends Gohan flying back up in pain.

Trunks can only gasp as sudden white raw pain fills his body. He falls to his knees, not understanding where it was coming from. His vision tunnels as he hears Gohan scream again. This snaps him back to reality and it is through sheer will force that he manages to fly to Gohan’s aid.

Now the battle is between him and Android 18. He manages to land a potent kick against Android 18’s chest, he hears her grunt something but all sounds distant. His head starts spinning and his cheek stings.

He is semi-conscious when he hears Gohan’s anguished call.

 

He can’t die.

His body moves on his own, and rage engulfs him as he watches Android 18 prepare her attack. Flying as fast as he can, he kicks 18 out of the way and catches Trunks.

It’s a blur of shit, debris and heat. The _heat_. The worse part is always the scorching heat, obliterating everything on its path. And even when it is not present, the ground broils in the after math.

His body is aching, cold sweat trails down his neck and his hands shake as he clutches Trunks close. Bracing for the impact, the rock against his back heats up rapidly and they are once again engulfed.

 

Gohan passes out for a split second before he startles awake, he blinks quickly and groans as he turns his head to see-

His arm is missing. Inwardly cursing the Androids to the deepest pits of hell, Gohan tries to control the bout of vertigo threatening to knock him unconscious. He’s loosing too much blood.

_Not_ _yet_.

Gohan leaves a trail of blood as he drags himself toward Trunks. His orange dōgi tearing even more leaving his already bruising skin, exposed to the heated unforgiving ground.

_Not_ _yet_.

“Eat it Trunks, you have to live,” mutters Gohan, pushing the senzu bean into the other’s mouth.

He passes out.

****

Trunk does not get to enjoy the feeling of his fracture ribs fixing themselves, or the waves of peppermint coolness as the senzu bean works its magic throughout his system. As soon as his body starts to relax from being healed, his brain is already firing rapid responses to his nervous system. It locks him in place and he forces himself to breathe carefully as his muscles and head start to burn.

He groans, and looks over to his side.

Gohan.

He gasps with every movement, the pain is slowly ebbing away but his muscles still feel horribly overworked. The floor feels like its caving under his feet as he stands up. He takes three steps before falling face first on the ground, this time next to Gohan.

“Let’s go home, Gohan.”

It was only after Gohan wakes up screaming in pain, that he finally, finally realizes why everything hurts so damn much.

“Those damn Androids,” groans Gohan through gritted teeth. Bulma goes to fetch bandages as Gohan is reduced to pants.

“I’m sorry,” whispers Trunks, his hand clenching into fists on his knees. “It’s my fault you are like this. If only...” he grits out, and feels a familiar prickle behind his eyes.

A hand lands on top of his, and Trunks meets Gohan’s smiling face.

“I’m just glad you are safe, Trunks,” he replies, ruffling the lavender hair, and he feels his own heart pull.

Ah.

“Let’s become stronger, so we avenge the deaths of our friends,” continues Gohan, and he lets out a chuckle at how instantly his heart stops to hurt. It is imbued with something akin to hope.

“I promise I’ll train hard!” Promises Trunks, relieved Gohan is not angry at him for his weakness, relieved that he will be able to continue training with him. He jumps to embrace the older half-Saiyan.

He’s alive. He’s alive. His only friend is alive.

They are so close that Trunks can feel Gohan’s breath hitch, either from pain or the sudden proximity. So close he can smell the blood seeping through the bandages. So close Trunks can feel the steady beating of Gohan’s heart— or perhaps it was his own.

There is a slight movement and warmth seeps through him, tinting his cheeks red. Gohan doesn’t deny him this small comfort.

When Bulma finally re-emerges with clean bandages, she wears a devious smile, and cackles at how quickly they shove each other away. She has more than enough material to tease both half-saiyans at the end of the day.

“Big babies,” she mutters as she changes Gohan’s bandages, but she too feels relieved to see both of them alive and breathing.

***

“It’ll be three hours before Goku arrives to Earth...” starts the seventeen year old Trunks, he fishes into his pocket and finds a small white box. Clicking it open he finds the capsule he is looking for, with a simple button push and a toss, out of the small pill comes out a fridge full of beverages.

“Please, take some, there is enough for everyone,” says Trunks, as he reaches into the fridge himself.

Naturally, Gohan is the first one to take up the offer, followed by his mother. Both are almost too gleeful despite the random circumstance in which he appeared.

And Trunks can’t help but stare. The smile is the same, the eyes, the mannerism.

“Thank you for offering...let me see which one do I want...” trails Gohan. Trunks hides the smile threatening to crawl on his face, behind his drink.

Gohan turns, drink in hand, to face Trunks and it is with those twinkling eyes and carefree smile, that Trunks pays attention to a detail that was once something part of his being, something akin to blood flowing through his veins.

It is with great surprise and ill-advised relief, that he finally feels the hum under his skin.


End file.
